“Are any of you suffering hardships? You should pray. Are any of you happy? You should sing praises.” James 5:13 NLT

A few verses before that we also find encouragement in James 5:11. “We give great honor to those who endure under suffering. For instance, you know about Job, a man of great endurance. You can see how the Lord was kind to him at the end, for the Lord is full of tenderness and mercy.” 

I know for me it was a reminder that trials are an honor which is a mindset that does not come easily to me. But we also have the promise that God is full of tenderness and mercy. And we have the practical part of remembering to pray when we have hardships. When we pray, we can take hold of knowing that God hears that prayer, is walking along side us through whatever we are going through, and is full of mercy which means He is supporting us and relieve will come eventually. I also think we could also look the “sing praises” part of James 5:13 and in the context of James 5:11 conclude that if we are counting our trials as an honor, then would would naturally be praising God for them. I don’t think we will necessarily be happy in the trials, but we can choose joy, we can choose to count it an honor, and praise God in the middle of it.

I encourage you to sing to Jesus. No matter where life finds you today praise Him in the trials. Praise Him in the middle of your happiness. And cling to the promises in these verses and throughout His Word.